rhem american forces press service

Technology, Doctrine Changes Allow for Better Bombing Runs

In the first 24 hours of Operation Desert Storm in 1991, coalition military aircraft “struck more targets than were struck in all of 1942 and 1943 by 8th Air Force during the Combined Bomber Offensive,” an Air Force officer said in the Pentagon today. In the opening hours of the impending military conflict with Iraq, American aircraft could drop 10 times as many bombs. The looming clash will be “an order of magnitude larger in terms of numbers of targets struck within the first 24 to 48 hours,” Col. Gary Crowder, chief of strategy, concepts and doctrine for Air Combat Command, said. Advances in precision and stealth technology and a new approach to planning have allowed for more efficient prosecution of bombing campaigns, the colonel said.

Technology, Transformation Improve Battlefield Health Care

Advances in technology and changes in procedures are leading to improved health care for troops before, during and after deployments, U.S. defnse officials say. “An array of medical technologies and capabilities” is being used to provide “layers of protection” to U.S. service members on the modern battlefield, the Defense Department’s top physician said today. Vaccines, protective and detective equipment, and first-rate front-line care combine to ensure American forces are prepared to face any threat, Dr. William Winkenwerder, assistant secretary of defense for health affairs, said in a Pentagon press briefing with several military medical experts.